The present invention relates to an automatic transfer method, a transfer robot, and an automatic transfer system. More specifically, the present invention relates to a technique of automatically transferring a transferred object by using a transfer robot capable of autonomous movement.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-142070 discloses a system for automatically transferring a transferred object to a destination by using a transfer robot 101 capable of autonomous movement shown in FIG. 27.
This transfer robot 101 comprises: an important object storage box 102 for accommodating a transferred object; a GPS receiving section 103 and position receiving means 104 for acquiring position information; a storage section 105 for storing beforehand the position information and a transfer sequence (traveling sequence) for a transfer destination; and a storage box controlling means 106. The storage box controlling means 106 performs control such that when two conditions are satisfied, an important object accommodated in the important object storage box 102 is allowed to be taken out. Specifically, when acquired position information agrees with position information concerning the transfer destination defined beforehand and the actual transfer sequence of the transfer robot 101 agrees with a transfer sequence defined beforehand, the storage box controlling means 106 allows the accommodated object to be taken out from the important object storage box 102. Further, when the transfer route is changed, the transfer robot 101 notifies the abnormal situation to the monitoring center. According to such a configuration, security is ensured during the transfer.
Nevertheless, in conventional automatic transfer employing a transfer robot capable of autonomous movement including that disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2004-142070, operation with respect to security is uniform and lacks flexibility. Specifically, flexible and dynamic operation of security levels in accordance with conditions (such as the type of the transferred object and a change in the environment around the transfer route to the destination) is not realized.